Jeremy Hunt: a tale of failed businesses and tax dodging

Tory leadership hopeful Jeremy Hunt has often tried to shrug off accusations of financial wrongdoing

Tory leadership hopeful, Jeremy Hunt, has promised wide-ranging tax cuts to appeal to the Conservative party’s base as part of his bid to become Britain’s next prime minister.

In its detailed analysis of Hunt’s fiscal policy, the right of centre thinktank, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), concludes that the foreign secretary’s taxation policy is untenable, as it will intensify pressure on spending departments across the government.

As pointed out by the IFS and other experts, similar to his rival, Boris Johnson, Hunt’s proposed taxation policy blatantly favours the wealthiest strata of society at the expense of the most disadvantaged segments of the population.

Hunt’s rich-friendly tax plans are in keeping with his attempt to cultivate the image of a successful businessman.

But the truth about his business background is more complicated. In his formative years Hunt presided over a series of failed business ventures, including a far-fetched plan to sell Marmalade to the Japanese.

More ominously, Hunt was accused of breaching company law in 2012 to reduce his tax bill by £100,000. “Hotcourses”, an educational guidance company Hunt co-founded in 1992, failed to file important documents with Companies House for over three years, when by law, they must be filed within 15 days.

Hunt’s misuse of power does not end there. Back in 2013 Hunt was admonished for misusing parliamentary expenses for personal gain.

In his former role as culture secretary, Hunt claimed £3,715.93 of taxpayers’ money to fund Chinese language lessons. He readily admitted to taking Mandarin lessons so that he could bond with his Chinese in-laws.

Hunt is married to a dual Chinese-British national, Lucia Gao, who is 11 years his junior.

Hunt’s misuse of public funds raised eyebrows across Britain for he is one of the wealthiest MP’s in the country.

British political observers fear that if Hunt becomes prime minister, the economic environment will become even more hostile to the poor and disadvantaged sections of society.